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The Lincoln Custom is a custom
limousine A limousine ( or ), or limo () for short, is a large, chauffeur-driven luxury vehicle with a partition between the driver compartment and the passenger compartment which can be operated mechanically by hand or by a button electronically. A luxu ...
and
long-wheelbase In both road and rail vehicles, the wheelbase is the horizontal distance between the centers of the front and rear wheels. For road vehicles with more than two axles (e.g. some trucks), the wheelbase is the distance between the steering (front ...
touring sedan that was built by
Lincoln Lincoln most commonly refers to: * Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865), the 16th president of the United States * Lincoln, England, cathedral city and county town of Lincolnshire, England * Lincoln, Nebraska, the capital of Nebraska, U.S. * Lincoln (na ...
in 1941 and 1942 and the lower level series Lincoln produced in 1955. Initially it was a replacement for the previous Model K Lincolns (produced from 1934 to 1939) and earlier luxury cars of the 1920s and 1930s. The body work for the Custom was provided by the factory and came in one appearance and abandoned the previous Model L and Model K of years past of manufacturing only the chassis then a long list of coachbuilders would provide coachwork to the customer's preference. In later years it was simply the base model series.


Overview

The Lincoln Custom was based on the
Lincoln-Zephyr The Lincoln-Zephyr is a line of Luxury vehicle, luxury cars that was produced by the Lincoln Motor Company, Lincoln division of Ford Motor Company, Ford from 1936 until 1942. Bridging the gap between the De Luxe Ford, Ford V8 DeLuxe and the Li ...
, a smaller, unit-bodied, mid-range priced vehicle introduced in 1936 with a smaller 267 cu. inch V-12 (based on the Ford V-8) while drawing many similarities to the
De Luxe Ford Ford Motor Company introduced its De Luxe Ford line in 1938 as an upscale alternative to bridge the gap between its base model (usually called Standard) and luxury Lincoln offerings. The "Deluxe" name was first used starting in 1930 to specify an ...
. This engine was enlarged to 292-ci for 1938, 305 ci 1942 only, but reduced to 292 ci after the war for the sake of durability, the "Ford-and-a-half" engine never a paragon of such. This car competed with the
Packard Super Eight The Packard Super Eight was the larger of the two Straight-eight engine, eight-cylinder Luxury vehicle, luxury automobiles produced by the Packard, Packard Motor Car Company of Detroit, Michigan. It shared frames and some body types with the top m ...
,
Cadillac Sixty Special Cadillac Sixty Special is a name used by Cadillac to denote a special model since the 1938 Harley Earl– Bill Mitchell–designed extended wheelbase derivative of the Series 60, often referred to as the Fleetwood Sixty Special. The Sixty Speci ...
and
Buick Limited The Buick Limited was Buick's flagship model line between 1936 and 1942, and, in celebration of GM's Fiftieth Anniversary, a single-year halo car for the Division in model year 1958. Since the 1960s Buick has intermittently used the term "Limit ...
while the Lincoln-Zephyr was considered the "junior" introduced in the mid-1930s to a shrinking luxury car market as engineering advances diminished the difference in performance between the outsized earlier luxe and the newer, more rational, affordable offerings. The earlier Lincoln Model K sold 3024 units in 1934, the first year of its production, only 133 units in 1939, 18 in 1940. 1940 saw the Zephyr and the higher priced
Continental Continental may refer to: Places * Continental, Arizona, a small community in Pima County, Arizona, US * Continental, Ohio, a small town in Putnam County, US Arts and entertainment * ''Continental'' (album), an album by Saint Etienne * Continen ...
carrying the Lincoln name. The wheelbase of the Lincoln Custom was compared to the Zephyr's , and only the seven-passenger sedan or limousine were offered. The interior choices offered a choice of
broadcloth Broadcloth is a dense, Plain weave, plain woven textile, cloth, historically made of wool. The defining characteristic of broadcloth is not its finished width but the fact that it was woven much wider (typically 50 to 75% wider than its finish ...
upholstery, while a long list of custom interior choices were available including leather. The Zephyr and Custom used the same V-12 engine that was enlarged for 1942 to with . The engine was the weakest point of the 1942 models, being very prone to overheating and premature wear. The 305 cubic inch version was reduced to a , version after World War II in an attempt to promote longevity. The V-12 was the only engine used in Lincolns until the new 1949 models came out with a flathead V-8 based on a Ford truck engine. The 168H (1941) and 268H (1942) Lincoln Customs featured two models: the Model 31 eight passenger sedan listed for US$2,950 ($ in dollars ) and the model 32 eight passenger limousine listed for US$3,075 ($ in dollars ). Differences included a division window and different front seat upholstery for the limousine. Both utilized a three speed
transmission Transmission or transmit may refer to: Science and technology * Power transmission ** Electric power transmission ** Transmission (mechanical device), technology that allows controlled application of power *** Automatic transmission *** Manual tra ...
with
Borg-Warner BorgWarner Inc. is an American automotive and e-mobility supplier headquartered in Auburn Hills, Michigan. As of 2023, the company maintains production facilities and sites at 92 locations in 24 countries, and generates revenues of US$14.2 bi ...
overdrive and Columbia two-speed rear axle. A small number were modified by the few custom coach builders left in the United States before the war. The 1942 models introduced
power windows Power windows or electric windows are automobile windows which can be raised and lowered by pressing a button or switch, as opposed to using a crank handle. History A small number of cars in the 1920s, such as the 1925 Flint Model E-55, f ...
to the luxury car field; electric and hydro-electric powered limousine dividers having previously been offered. Specifications were: For 1942, the Zephyr-based waterfall grill was changed to a broad full-width grill that extended above and below the hood and was also used in the 1946-1948 models (Lincoln sedan and Lincoln Continental). These changes were undoubtedly due to the major Cadillac and Packard grill design changes during these immediate pre-war years, whose production and sales far outpaced Lincoln. After
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, production of these vehicles was not resumed. The former Zephyr became the only Lincoln sedan and was available in both standard and DeLuxe versions. The famous
Lincoln Continental The Lincoln Continental is a series of mid-sized and full-sized luxury cars produced between 1939 and 2020 by Lincoln, a division of the American automaker Ford Motor Company. The model line was introduced following the construction of a per ...
remained as a limited production, very expensive (and not very reliable) semi-custom offering from the luxury division of Ford Motor Company. For 1949, a major revamp of the entire Lincoln line was made, eliminating the slant-back Zephyr and custom Continental and introducing relatively modern V-8 power. In 1955, the Lincoln Custom name returned (for one year only) as the lower level series. Brakes were 12" drums.


Presidential limousine

A special 1942 limousine was provided to the
White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest (Washington, D.C.), NW in Washington, D.C., it has served as the residence of every U.S. president ...
for the President's use. This car weighed more than and was refitted with a 1946 grill clip after the war for modernization.
Cadillac Cadillac Motor Car Division, or simply Cadillac (), is the luxury vehicle division (business), division of the American automobile manufacturer General Motors (GM). Its major markets are the United States, Canada and China; Cadillac models are ...
and Lincoln vied for visibility and prestige by supplying limousines and other special vehicles to the White House (generally by means of a $1.00 per year or other low-cost lease arrangement).
Packard Packard (formerly the Packard Motor Car Company) was an American luxury automobile company located in Detroit, Michigan. The first Packard automobiles were produced in 1899, and the last Packards were built in South Bend, Indiana, in 1958. One ...
and
Chrysler FCA US, LLC, Trade name, doing business as Stellantis North America and known historically as Chrysler ( ), is one of the "Big Three (automobile manufacturers), Big Three" automobile manufacturers in the United States, headquartered in Auburn H ...
were rarely able to penetrate this exclusive advertising strategy.


References

{{Lincoln historic timeline
Custom Custom, customary, or consuetudinary may refer to: Traditions, laws, and religion * Convention (norm), a set of agreed, stipulated or generally accepted rules, norms, standards or criteria, often taking the form of a custom * Mores, what is wid ...
1940s cars Cars introduced in 1941 Cars discontinued in 1942